Missanthrope
by BitchPrincessOfPunkRock
Summary: The Sequel to my 'An Unquestioned Past'. A Third World tour for the Bladebreakers takes them on a Journey around Europe. First stop: England. And Kai becomes even more distant from the group when they meet an amature beyblader with huge potential.
1. Prologue

**Chapter 1: Letter to an Imaginary Friend**

My name is Zhaila Berlini. Zhai, to you. I am a 18 year old student, and beyblader. I currently live in England, but I was brought up in Germany. I was born and raised in Dresden, a reasonably quiet town.

I was born into a very wealthy family. But quite the contrary to what you may think, we are not pampered and preened. Our families expect us to become the next generation of them. They expect perfection. I was not. My father was very protective of me when i was young. He adored me, and managed to protect me from my mothers will for a few years.

That all ended when I turned 7. Father was involved in a severe train accident. He had been visiting his ill mother down in Genoa, Italy. On his way home, his train derailed and...Well, thats never going to be a good thing.

Mother didn't take the news so badly. She had me immediatly sent off to a prep school here in England. They beat the defiance out of you there. I ran away when I turned 16. I'm a sort of street rat now. I eat when I can, and sleep wherever I find a dry spot. It may not sound terribly glamourous, but i get by. It's a life you get used to.

I managed to keep hold of my beyblade. It is the only thing i have left of Dad, after all. And it is exactly the thing that triggered a rather unexpected adventure. Who ever said life should be boring? Mine certainly hasn't been, and this is just the beggining of the story.

This is my story, and I want to share it with you.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Welcome to England**

As Kai Hiwatari stepped onto solid ground, he wanted nothing more than to walk right back onto the plane and head back to Japan. The flight had been long, excruciatingly so. The physical time hadn't bothered him, after all he did spend a fair proportion of his time thinking to himself. No, What bothered Kai was the little itch that refuses to leave you alone, the headache that never shuts up. More commonly know as…

'Tyson Granger!' Mr Dickinson's voice echoed over the cement floor.

Kai looked up to see Tyson and Max run to meet him. Kenny was walking, clutching Dizzi under his arm tightly. Ray began to wander over too, but not before turning and gesturing for Kai to follow. Despite his overwhelming urge to go home, he did so.

'Ah, Kai, My boy. Glad you decided to join us once again.' He paused, waiting for Kai to respond. When he didn't, He continued, 'Um…Yes, Well. Shall we be off then? We have much to do.'

The boys followed Mr Dickinson into the airport, through several long corridors to a large grey room filled with sofas. A television stood in one corner, and though it was muted, Kai could see the news was on. Something about a runaway girl. There was a picture of her. She had shoulder length black hair, and piercing green eyes. _So familiar…_

'You boys will be staying in a hotel nearby, all expenses paid, of course. The Association takes care of that. Now, the tournament…'

'Yeah! That's what we're here for!' Tyson interrupted.

Max cheered, and Mr Dickinson, who was getting used to Tyson's excitable behaviour, paused to let them calm down.

'I apologize for my friends, sir,' Kenny added, barely whispering.

'It is quite alright, my dear boy. Now, as I was saying. The tournament has a new twist you have not come up against yet. At least not since we first formed your team back in Japan.'

'Oh, we can take anything you throw at us, Mr D!'

'Don't be so overconfident, Tyson,' Ray added.

'Well, I am sure it will suit some of you better …' Dickinson continued, glancing at Kai, who was paying very little attention, 'You will not be entering as a team. This particular tournament requires participants to contend as individuals.'

The room fell to silence. Mr Dickinson looked from face to face. Ray looked amused, while Max looked excited. Kenny began to type something into Dizzy, and Tyson stood with his mouth gaping. Kai, however, had not looked away from the TV. Tyson seemed to notice this.

'Hey, Kai! Did you not hear him! Individually, that means…'

Kai interrupted him, a rare grin across his face.

'It means, I'm going to win.'


	3. Chapter 2

Zhaila didn't remember much from her life before the streets. She remembered her farther, and how he had adored her. Until his death. And then everything became this blur. Moving so quickly, like a ride you aren't enjoying, but they can't hear you yelling to get out. And now she was here.

'Wherever here is,' she sighed to herself.

Brushing down her woollen sleeves, and wrapping her coat around herself a little more, she continued down the alleyway. She had slept here for the last week. Her winnings from the small tourney in Birmingham all but gone, she saved what she had left for her food.

Sometimes she wondered weather the anonymity was worth the struggle. She could have won every single one of the tournaments she had entered. They were all small scale, designed for scouting new talent. And she didn't want to be scouted. She would coast through to the final, then throw the match. Subtly, of course. The runner-up prise money was enough to get her by, and she didn't want the attention of winning.

Now she was in London. Struggling again. And there were no small scale tourneys held in London.

She pulled the flyer from her pocket, and scanned over it again.

Registration was today. She would have to do and exhibition match, seeing as she wasn't represented by an agency, but she would win.

'I always win, when I want to.'

**********

Tyson was stoaked! He had been in England a whole week, and what a week it'd been!

He hadn't been dragged on a single sight seeing tour, or been lectured by Rei about taking in the culture. Kenny had been busy upgrading Max's Draciel, and today the pair of them had gone out to test the new model.

Tyson had just been left in the hotel to eat and sleep as he saw fit. And he was loving every moment!

He checked his watch. 12.30. Hmm. Maybe it's time to get some lunch, he thought, as he dragged himself out of his bed. Not even bothering to get dressed, he wandered into the lounge in his pyjamas. He walked past the second bedroom, and spotted Kai sat on his bed.

Not the most talkative of people on a good day, Kai had been almost silent the entire week. It struck Tyson as a little odd, as he made his way to the fridge and grabbed the first thing in sight. To be honest, today was the first time he had seen Kai in the hotel room. Normally, he would have left before anyone else woke up, and didn't return until late at night.

Strange, even for a loner like Kai.

With that thought, Tyson nearly jumped out of his skin, having walked right into the subject of his thought. He couldn't help but shout out in surprise, and he dropped his food on the floor. Kai just blinked at him, and then walked around him.

' Where are you going?' asked Tyson, regaining his composure a little.

' None of your business.'

' That doesn't mean I'm not interested! C'mon, buddy, wouldn't hurt to have some company y'know!' he said, putting his hand on Kai's shoulder.

Actually, that might have been a mistake, he thought, grimacing slightly at what was to come. But to his surprise, Kai merely shrugged.

' The wildcard entry exhibitions are this afternoon. You might want to check out the competition.'

' Nah, I'll just stay in bed. See ya.'

And he did. At least, he tried. Now that he thought about it, maybe he was getting a little bored. And he should, really, check out the wildcard. After all, that could be his opponent, and it always helped to have a little info to go on before the match.

Having convinced himself, he dressed and made his way down to the hotel lobby. He was about to ask the receptionist for directions, when a poster caught his eye.

**BBA supported BRITISH CHAMPIONSHIPS! Registration, this way.**

On second thought, how'd I miss it? He wondered as he followed the arrow. A series of the flyers had been strung up all down the street, leading to a huge city hall. Hundreds of hopeful looking people crowded around the door. He started making his way towards them, when someone grabbed his arm.

'Whoa! What the hell…?!'

'You need to chill out a bit,' came the playful voice of Max Tate, 'We get to use the back door, seeing as we're only spectating.'

Tyson followed him to a smaller door at the side of the hall, and through onto a balcony looking over the huge space. Twenty or so small beyblade battle dishes had been placed around the room, allowing more eliminations to take place at once. He watched as a redheaded boy won his match easily and punched the air. Absently he wondered how all these people would be narrowed down to one.

'They get it down to sixteen today, then they battle it out in the proper arena tomorrow,' Kenny piped up, as though reading his mind. 'It would help if I could narrow it down a bit, Dizzy can't hold data on all off them.'

'The redhead down to the left is doing pretty well,' Tyson said.

'Yeah, but so is the guy with the nose ring,' Max added, pointing to a tall blonde.

'Dark haired girl, far right.'

Tyson jumped. He hadn't heard anyone approach them, but Kai stood leaning against the wall behind them, arms crossed and with a look of mild interest on his face.

'Oh, yeah? What makes you so sure?' Tyson said, a little more confrontationally than he had intended.

'Call it champion's intuition,' Kai sneered back, before stalking away.

'Do you two always have to fight?' Kenny sighed.

'Well, he shouldn't be such a smartass!'


	4. Chapter 3

Kai wandered down the alleyway. It looked almost identical to the last one, but that hadn't really registered. He was confused, and the cold crisp air helped clear his thoughts. He was almost certain she was the same girl. It might not even be her, he reminded himself. And if it is, will she remember. His first, and only, friend. At least until the Bladebreakers came along.

He sighed. He knew Tyson hadn't meant to be so abrasive. But he had let it get to him, and snapped. Now he didn't much feel like company.

He stopped, finally, and looked around. Tall, grey buildings surrounded him, and in the fading light everything seemed monotonous. He felt suddenly claustrophobic, and resolved to find somewhere more peaceful to spend the night.

*****

Rei Kon prided himself on his ability to stay calm. He could be the voice of reason on the team. He tried his best not to get involved in the bickering. He could block things out, like a switch. Not this, though. Kai hadn't returned last night, and Max had explained his argument with Tyson. It was lunch time now, and still no sign. Even at the first half of the wildcard trials. Tyson, of course, was taking no responsibility.

'I was joking! He shouldn't take everything so seriously!'

'I don't know. You were pretty rude, Tyson,' Kenny said, without looking away from Dizzy.

'He can take care of himself,' Max resolved. 'It isn't like this is the first time he's left without warning.'

'You're right, Max,' Rei said, deciding it was better not to worry about it. 'How's that analysis coming on, Chief?'

'Well, Max's favourite was knocked out this morning, but both Tyson and Kai's made it through. The redhead's name is Dwayne and he's got a pretty solid style…'

'Lets it get to his head too much, though,' interrupted Dizzy. 'He gets cocky.'

'And the girl?' Tyson asked.

'Zhaila. I… uh…'

'What's up, chief?' Rei asked, moving closer to Dizzy.

'What he's trying to say is… He doesn't know,' Dizzy answered.

'What!? You know everything!' Tyson shouted.

'She's too good, Tyson,' Kenny finally said. 'She's had eight matches so far, and not one has lasted longer than 60 seconds. Whatever she does, she does it fast.'

For a moment there was only a stunned silence. To finish a battle in less than a minute! That took a massive amount of starting power. It was difficult to comprehend. Tyson was the first to snap out of it.

'Well, we'd better get back down to the arena then, or we'll miss all the action!'

'Yeah, I guess you're right,' Rei replied, and they headed down to the arena.

*****

Zhaila brushed her fringe from her face as she stepped towards the dish. She didn't look her opponent in the eye, knowing it would make him nervous. Instead, she looked over the crowd. It was busier now than this morning, she supposed people were interested to see who would compete against the big boys. Well, now they've seen her, she thought.

Finally, she looked at boy standing opposite her. He was short and blonde, and had pale green eyes that looked terrified. Clearly he had never been in a tourney this big before. This would be easier than she thought.

'Ready…' Shouted the BBA official to her left.

She loaded her blade, and clicked the launcher into place.

'Steady…'

She took her position, and held up her arm.

'Let it rip!'

The boy was nervous and let rip too early. Rather than their blades meeting in the middle in unison, his blade bounced to the centre of the dish first. Seconds later, Zhaila's crashed down on top of it, sending it spinning into the air.

The crowd gasped, and the boy recoiled, but the blade managed to land on the rim of the dish.

'Finish this,' Zhai said aloud.

Her blade shot forward, and before the impact even happened, she turned away from the dish. She listened to the clash, and the sound of his blade smashing to the ground by his feet. Her own obediently flew into her palm.

She walked away, satisfied. Somewhere behind her she heard the official announce her victory, and advancement to the final round. As she walked back to the waiting room, she felt as though somebody was watching her.

She stopped still, suddenly, and waiting for an echoed footfall. It didn't come. Maybe she was imagining it. She continued down the hallway, but the feeling didn't go away. When she reached the door, she turned and looked back up the corridor. She could see nobody, but she still felt uneasy.

'You can follow me all you like,' she called into the emptiness, 'I'm still going to win.'

As she turned back into the room, she almost heard a whisper.

'I'm almost certain of it.'


	5. Chapter 4

Kai was stood against the back wall of the arena. From here he could just about make out the silhouetted shape of his team mates. Two medium height excitable shadows, one in a hat, jumping and cheering. A taller, stationary figure and a seated one - barely visible behind his computer screen.

From his vantage point, Kai couldn't be spotted by his friends, but still had a good view of the main beyblading arena. This was the last of the wildcard elimination matches, and the first to be played in a full sized competitive dish.

He was jerked from his thoughts as a cheer went up all around the arena. As these were only the wildcard entries, no commentary was given. If you wanted the action, you had to see it and not have it dictated. Kai much preferred the natural sounds of a crowd.

The competitors took their places at the dish. They both looked confident, but he knew looks could be deceiving. He noticed Zhaila hadn't used any of her confidence sapping tricks. It was unusual.

Kai couldn't hear the BBA official, but saw his mouth move and knew what he was saying. He watched Zhaila load her blade and prepare the launcher. Almost mechanically.

He felt suddenly concerned. Strict routines could be read, and broken. If her opponent was observant, and had been watching her other matches, he would know what was to come. He hoped she wouldn't go for the swift finish.

But she did.

She went straight for the knockout, the same tactic she had used in all her other matches. But he knew, and he was prepared. At the last moment, his blade shot to the right. Hers almost propelled itself straight out of the ring, but managed to stop and hover on the edge for a minute. The room went silent.

Still she didn't snap out of it. She just stood, almost resigned to defeat, as her blade took hit after hit. She stared blankly at the dish.

Kai was worried. If she lost, he'd never see her again. He would never know if it really was the girl from his childhood.

'Come on, go for it,' He heard himself saying aloud.

A girl stood in front of him also began to cheer, and soon the whole crowd was chanting and calling. The room erupted into noise. Kai watched as Zhaila looked around at the crowd, and thought he saw the spark returning to her eyes.

'You can do this. If you are half the person I think you are, You can do this.'

*****

Zhaila Berlini was rarely shaken. She relied on herself, knowing she was the only person she could trust not to let her down.

But, you're letting yourself down now, she thought.

The thought came without warning, but it was the truth. She had allowed herself to become distracted. Dwelling on the feeling she was being watched. And it had almost cost her the match. She shook her head in an attempt to clear it of these distracting thoughts.

Then she realised the crowd was chanting again. If she was honest, it hadn't registered when they had gone silent. Only now, in the racket around her, did she realised how quiet it had been before.

It made her feel strange. She felt… liked. These people, complete strangers, wanted her to win. They cared whether she won or lost. They cared about her.

She felt invigorated. Who cares if somebody is watching me from the shadows. These people are watching me anyway. And we'll give them a show.

She flexed her shoulders, which felt suddenly stiff, and looked her opponent in the eyes.

'Ready to finish this, boy?'

He narrowed his eyes, but said nothing, focusing his attention on the dish.

'Did you really think you could get the best of us?'

'You aren't going to win with words,' He retorted.

'Well then, we'll just have to beat him the old fashioned way, won't we Yilan.'

Zhaila closed her eyes, and cleared her mind. She stretched her neck and took a slow, deep breath. Her beyblade spun steadily in the centre of the dish, and she locked her piercing green eyes onto her opponents face.

'Show me what you got.'

He tore his eye away from her, and went for the attack once again. This time, she was the one to dodge. But instead of hesitating and allowing him to regain the ground, she attacked.

Lightning fast, her blade shot after his, forcing it over the edge. She caught her blade as it fell through the air.

The boy cried out as he realised he couldn't reach his own blade before it hit the ground and smashed. He closed his eyes, not wanting to watch. Then he felt something touch his shoulder.

'This is yours, I believe.'

Zhaila pressed his beyblade into his hand, and smirked at him.

'Look after it,' she said, 'You did well.'

And then she turned and walked away from the commotion in the arena. Maybe she could get used to attention, but not in one day!


	6. Chapter 5

The night after Zhaila's win was the most comfortable evening of her teenage life. She was given a room in the same hotel as the other competitors, and been fed an incredible selection of food in a large dining area. It was odd, sitting in a room designed to hold hundreds, all by herself. She ate what she could, and apologised to her escort for her lack of appetite.

'That's quite all right, madam. I am sure you're just tired. It has been a long day for you. I'll show you your room, and you can get some rest,' he said, gesturing for her to follow him down the hall.

She nodded, and followed him. Though, in truth, she wasn't tired in the least. He led her down several beautifully decorated halls, up several flights of stairs, and finally to a polished wooden door with the bronze plated number 415 mounted in the centre. He apologised for the smaller room, then bid her goodnight and handed her a key card.

She opened the door and gawped around the room for a moment. Small?! It was huge. Straight in front of her was a deep leather sofa facing towards a mounted flat screen TV. Beyond that she could see a door leading to the bathroom. To her right was an open plan kitchen area, with a small dining table and chairs.

But she was most interested in the door to the top right of the room. The bedroom. She placed her hand on the handle, and took a breath before opening it wide. Against the back wall was a king-size bed, complete with winter duvet and a mountain of pillows. Without hesitation, she threw herself onto it. It was even softer than she imagined, and she relished in the moment. It had been months since she slept on a proper bed, never mind one as luxurious as this.

Kicking off her shoes, she wriggled up to rest on the pillows. As she did so, she noticed the window to the right. A three pained bay window, complete with window seat and cushion. Outside, she saw it was snowing. She moved towards the window, perching on the edge of the seat.

She was surprised at what she saw. The ground was fast covered in a white blanket. A good inch or so of fresh white powder sat snugly on the windowsill on the other side of the glass. A brief snow shower was common in winter, and it was the end of November. But she had lived in England for nearly 5 years and it had never stuck so well before.

She felt suddenly compelled to go outside. It was a childish, but joyous urge, and she decided to indulge it. She grabbed her shoes, and headed back down the hall way.

It didn't take her long to find her way back to the main entrance, and she wandered off down streets she wasn't familiar with. The best way to learn a new area is, of course, to explore it.

The snow continued to fall, making more and more difficult to walk through. Apparently, nobody was expecting the sudden wintry weather, and the roads hadn't been salted. They where quickly becoming overrun with the snow, and the drivers where panicking. Zhaila decided to take the back roads.

She wasn't sure how long she was wandering before she found it, but her feet where becoming numb to the cold. She stumbled into an abandoned bus station. It looked like a new one had been build, and nobody had gotten round to demolishing the original.

The roof was tall, but covered, so the snow couldn't get under here. She shook the remnant snow from her shoes, and moved further under her temporary shelter. It was large and empty, and her footsteps echoed loudly against the stone columns.

Towards the back of the structure was a single, tattered wooden bench. Zhaila sat and enjoyed the silence. She could see the chaos out on the main roads on either side of the building, but this far back should could only heard the muted rumble of the traffic. She closed her eyes, and relaxed.

Then there was something else. She didn't look up, but listened carefully. Footsteps. More than one pair of footsteps. Now she looked. Two silhouettes stood at the exit to her left, and to her right was a girl about the same age as her. She wore a simple jumper and denim jeans, and had adopted an aggressive stance.

'Can I help you?' Zhaila called, to no response.

She stepped towards the girl. In any case, she was surrounded. If she needed to make a break for it, it would be easier to evade one person, even if she was the ring leader. As Zhai approached, the girl produced a beyblade and launcher, and prepared to launch.

'Oh, It's a battle you want. Well, far be it for me to deny you,' she called, pulling her own blade from her pocket.

She was about to let rip when another blade shot past her, and crashed to the feet of the girl. She gestured to the others, and then ran. Zhaila followed the blade trajectory backwards. It had come from above and behind her. She scanned the wall, and just as she spotted the hole at the far end, a figure jumped out of it.

It was a boy, a similar age to herself, with two-toned blue hair. He didn't look at her, but walked past and retrieved his beyblade. He pocketed it, and then moved towards the main road. Zhai followed him.

'Erm… Thanks, I guess,' she said. He didn't answer. 'Might've struggled to take three out at once.'

Still nothing. She noticed he was heading back towards the hotel.

'You one of the competitors in the tourney?' she asked.

This time he nodded. Well, at least he wasn't completely ignoring her. Good, it was a start. And she followed him back to the hotel in silence.


	7. Chapter 6

Rei had been the first to notice the snow. He had been stood at the window, gazing out at the beauty of the cityscape at night. The florescent streetlights glimmering like stars scattered throughout the labyrinth of concrete. At first, he had thought the shadows were playing tricks on his mind, tiny flickering movements out of the corner of his eye. But the snowfall became more heavy, the flakes becoming larger. For a moment he was struck by how beautiful the delicate little shapes really are. Then…

'Oh. My. God! Is that snow?' Shouted Max, 'Ty! Look, it's snowing!'

Tyson jumped from his slouched position on the sofa, and bounded across the room to the window. Even Kenny looked up from dizzy. Rei chuckled. It was as though they'd never seen snow before.

'Come on, we have o go outside!' bellowed Tyson.

'But it isn't even that deep…' Rei started, but as he said it he turned and looked out of the window again. An inch of powdery white snow sat neatly along the windowsill. He had obviously misjudged the speed at which the snow was falling. 'Nevermind,' he sighed.

The group - including Kenny, whom they had to drag along with them - pulled on whatever coats they had and made their way down to the entrance hall of the hotel. For a while, they all stood in the doorway, just staring out into the growing whiteness. Daring one another, like waiting for the first person to dive into a swimming pool.

Finally, Tyson broke. He made a noise like a squealing child, and then pushed Max down the three steps into the courtyard. Kenny hurriedly placed Dizzy on a table by the door before being thrown down to join the giggling American.

Tyson, for a moment at least, looked to be considering tackling Rei, then thought better of it and jumped down the stairs to join his friends in what quickly turned into a snowball fight. Rei remained where he was, keeping a protective eye on the scene.

He was about to leave them to their games, and retire to his warm bedroom, when something caught his eye. A tuft of blue hair could be seen amongst the snow, and it was moving closer.

Early, for Kai, he thought.

Then another figure followed. A coincidence, surely. Kai wouldn't be walking with somebody else.

But they approached together, and entered the courtyard. Rei realised the second person was the wildcard winner. What was her name… Zhaila. What where they doing together, he wondered. Not the only one…

'Wow, look at that!' Tyson shouted. 'Kai actually managed to make a friend! First for everything, I guess.'

Kai glowered, but the girl wasn't content with taking the comment lightly.

'Tyson, isn't it?' she smirked, 'Who else has a mouth so big, and a brain so small.'

Tyson's jaw dropped. He hadn't been expecting a retort, and wasn't sure how to respond to the stranger. She, however, wasted no time summing them up.

'Hyperactive blonde must be Max. Glasses I'm assuming is the brains of the outfit - Chief, yeah? And that just leaves Tall, Dark and Handsome here,' She turned to Rei, smiled and said, 'Am I getting warm, Mr Kon?'

For an instant, nobody moved. Everyone, including Kai, just stared at the strange girl who had wandered into their group uninvited and pegged them all down in less than a sentence. Then the moment passed. Rei chuckled, and Max giggled as he pushed a still gawping Tyson into the deepening snow.

'Well, I never thought Kai could put so many words together,' Rei laughed, approaching the newcomer.

'Him?' she gestured, 'Nah! Hasn't so much as opened his mouth to breath!'

Tyson looked particularly confused, 'So, how'd you know who we are?'

'What, you seriously think I've never heard of the Bladebreakers? I might lead a pretty isolated life, but I do occasionally walk past a TV, or a radio.'

Tyson didn't reply, only staring, dumbfounded. Max laughed at his team-mate, Kenny giggled, and even Kai smirked. Tyson shook his head, as though waking from a daydream, and Max lead him back inside. The others followed, and Zhai watched them go. As they reached the bottom of the steps, one turned back towards her.

'Well, Zhaila,' Rei said, patting her on the shoulder affectionately, 'If you can put Tyson in his place like that, you'll be worth getting to know. Will you join us?'

Zhaila smiled. She had never really had friends before, and the opportunity overwhelmed her for a moment. She took a steadying breath, and then followed him in to the building.


End file.
